Finding A Silver Lining Every Day

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This is Helene writing today because unfortunately this evening Brad lost his courageous battle against this horrible disease. It is with great sadness that I must tell your that he passed away peacefully in his sleep surrounded by me and the kids.We are working on funeral details and will post once available. There are no words to describe how grateful we are for all of your devoted love and support. We will always be #bradstrong.

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125 responses to “This is Helene writing today because unfortunately this evening Brad lost his courageous battle against this horrible disease. It is with great sadness that I must tell your that he passed away peacefully in his sleep surrounded by me and the kids.We are working on funeral details and will post once available. There are no words to describe how grateful we are for all of your devoted love and support. We will always be #bradstrong. ”

Helene – I am so very sorry for your incredible loss. I went to high school with Brad and have such fond memories of him. He was a great guy – kind, fun, funny and always smiling. You have a beautiful family and it’s clear from his pictures and blog that he was so very proud of you all. I am so sorry and thinking of you all.

Though I didn’t know Brad personally we learned of him through his parents Natallie and Ike and his blogs.
His courage was evident in the blogs.
Being a doctor I knew that he was brilliant from his ease in relating the arcane terms of his treatment. We shall miss him. Brad, has left his mark with a courageous battle .

Dear Helene. May G-D continue to give you and the family the strength to bare this sadness. Brad left a lot of love with a lot of people. You have that love and support now. If there is anything Harv and I could do to help. We are here for you, the children, natalie and ike.

dear Helene,
My thoughts were always with Brad and your family during this journey. Much love to you and the kids during this difficult time. To happy and loving memories always.
Thinking of you and sending you lots of Bradstrong strength.
Elena

Helene, I am so sorry. Brad was a amazing man and fought a courageous battle. I feel lucky enough to have spent alot of time with Brad over the years and will treasure those memories. My family will continue to keep you and your family in our thoughts and prayers.#bradstrong

Helene, my heart breaks for you and your family today. Brad had so much character and strength that it made people around him better. I hope you are able to smile through the sadness at the wonderful memories you created together – and at the beautiful children who will continue his special legacy. Much love and hugs surround you…

Helene: You and the children were blessed to have had Brad in your lives. He was filled with laughter, purity of heart and most importantly, his love for you and the children. Its all he ever spoke of (alright, I wouldnt be telling the entire truth if I failed to mention that he did talk up his business with me occassionnally too). Abby and I are extremely saddened by todays news, but we will continue to love Brad forever!

Helene, So sorry to read about Brad’s passing. I have followed his blog and have been so moved by his strength, determination and positive attitude. What a legacy he has left for you and your wonderful kids. Thinking of you and sending you love and hugs from Minnesota.

So incredibly sad to hear this news. We’ve been dealing with MM since the holidays and one of the first things we stumbled on was this blog. Brad by all accounts, seems to have been a wonderful man who inspired so many people with his courage and honesty. Our thoughts and prayers are his family, friends and colleagues. Brad, thank you for laying yourself bare during this experience. Rest well knowing that we will continue this fight and that you and your family have touched so many lives along the way. Always #bradstrong!

Helene,
I am so sorry for your loss. I met Brad at Mt. Sinai on my first day of chemo. He was there for me that day, and the Saturdays following when we were both there for chemo. He was an amazing person. I am so glad to have known him.
I will be climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro to raise awareness for the MMRF. I’d like to leave something of Brad’s at the summit. A BradStrong T-Shirt or bracelet. Please let me know if you would like me to do this in his memory.

I’ve never met your family, but I learned of your story at an Imagine event. I’ve been following Brad’s blog along the way and rooting for him as a complete stranger. I will pray for you all now as you experience this great loss. What a fighter he was!!!!

Dear Helene and Children,
We are so sorry for your loss. You are in our thoughts and prayers! Brad put up a good fight, a fight to the end. My husband is suffering from Multiple Myeloma (he was diagnosed on 8/13/2010). He became paralyzed (23 radiation treatments to his back, he had a very large plasmacytoma on his t-2, it was also fractured) from Oct. 2010 to August 2011. After surgery at Stamford on May 24, 2011, Dr. Mindea could not guarantee he would walk again, but walk again he did (with rollator). Right now we had to stop the Kyprolis and Dex, his legs are getting very weak and heavy. He feels he doesn’t have much time left. I try to keep him positive, but he is in so much pain. Lenny is 72. Brad was very young….ironically, my brother Danny also sees Dr. J for smoldering myeloma. I hate this disease!

My sincerest condolences to all of you. The world lost a great man. While I have only met you a few times at the outings, my partners and I had the honor and privilege to work with Brad for the past few years. Brad was always in a great mood. He was always smiling. He was always cracking jokes, and when he helped with some of our seminars, he can command a room like no other and make everyone laugh. I lost my father to cancer at the age of 18, 16 years ago. I share in your pain. I always found comfort in knowing my father was finally at peace. Brad fought one hell of a fight. He will be sorely missed by us. He will always be #BradStrong. May he rest in peace and watch over you and the kids always. I’ll see ya when I see ya buddy. Rest easy. We’ll miss ya Pal.

Brad inspired all who read his blog &, I suspect, all who knew him. He was such a courageous warrior against MM. Our loving sympathy to all of us who wished him success in his battle against cancer. We will not forget you soon.
Love to his family.
Lois & Jerry Koral

I’m sad for your loss of this man who cherished his life with you and his children. He tried so hard to get that last glowing ember to ignite, to burst into flame, that he might hold you at his side one more time.

I am so very sorry to hear this. I’ve been following brads story since my dad was diagnosed with myeloma 3 yrs ago. I always referred back to brads blogs to read about his status and to compare his story with my dads. Everytime I read his blog, I felt a sense of reassurance. I enjoyed his positive outlook and all his silver linings. I feel for you as my dad traveled a similar route. He was high risk myeloma, had a stem cell transplant this past December but unfortunately The myeloma spread to the soft tissue in his lungs and he passed on 5/24. I understand the yo yo stress of waiting for results only to learn of the inevitable. I understand the relief that they are no longer suffering from this horrible cancer but you still are wishing they were with you. I know the feeling of wishing you could feel your dad hug you one more time. even though he is no longer physically here, he gave you everlasting gifts – your children, the gift of life, faith, hope and strength. Look for the little signs each day that he is still there because he will be. I am praying for you, his extended family and friends. May you find comfort in knowing that brad fought such a good, hard and brave fight and he helped many people, like myself, learn about myeloma and how to be strong even when it feels like you world is crumbling.

Dear Helene and children,
You have a beautiful angel now…. May you always remember the good times you shared and how strong you all are. You are in our thoughts and prayers today and always. May you always be comforted by the wonderful memories you hold in your heart. Keep smiling Helene ❤️❤️

Dear Helene, Victor and Ava,
I have been following your Dad’s blog for a while now and am so deeply saddened to hear of his passing. It is hard to imagine how difficult this has been for you, yet you shared your lives with us. Brad was honest, courageous, brave and the love he had for all of you seemed paramount to everything else.
Sending prayers for comfort and support to your beautiful family.

Dear Helene and kids,
I am so sorry for your loss. Our heartfelt condolences go out to you and your family and wish for you and your children strength and happiness in the coming days, weeks, months and years. I never met your husband, but I have followed his courageous journey from his blog. I am typically rarely moved, but his journey from the start and end with family by his side has been awe inspiring.

We don’t know each other personally, but we do have many friends in common and our son, Walter, is friends with Ava. My father n law passed from MM in 2001 and only after his passing did we become involved with the foundation. The fact that Brad could take such an active role in trying to support this group, raise awareness and funds WHILE he was sick and seeking treatment is remarkable. His strength and perseverance have most certainly passed on to your children who have said and done remarkable things to help people with this disease. My mother, a teacher for over 25 years, passed two years ago from a rare cancer at the age of 65. She touched hundreds of people’s lives and handled her short illness with dignity and grace. She set an example for so many. Her symbol to me is the peacock. I only tell you this because I couldn’t help but notice the picture of Brad standing next to a peacock on one of the Facebook postings. The peacock symbolizes eternal life and resurrection. The peacock also represents an evolved soul, one that has a special duty in its existence both in heaven and on earth. It is my belief that there are people who walk the earth because they chose to be here to teach others lessons. Brad’s presence on earth might only have been for a short time but his impact on the world and on other people has been enormous. Look for signs. Evolved souls have tremendous energy to make contact and communicate with us here in the physical world. We are so sorry for your loss. Our prayers are with you. The Schwartz Family

Only tonight did I happen to stumble on Brad’s entry from 6/20/13 regarding the peacock on your roof. Had not seen this prior to my sending our condolence note. I am stunned. Furthermore, I have had a picture of that peacock from Father’s Day 2013 from the Westfield Leader next to my kitchen sink for the last two years as I was certain it was a sign from my Mom. She had only passed two months before at that point and my kids wanted to know when we were going to get a peacock in our yard as a symbol from their Nina. Other family members had seen peacocks and so my boys were waiting. When the Leader published that there was a peacock in someone’s back yard in Westfield on Father’s Day, I cut out the picture and taped it to my wall. I told my boys that the peacock was close by and made an appearance. (They wanted him in our yard, so I told them he just got a little lost.)